A TEEN’S passport blunder cost his family a £1,000 dream holiday after Ryanair wouldn’t let him on the plane.
Jake Burton, 19, was set to go on his first-ever flight to Benidorm for New Year’s Eve with his parents.
The family was all set to jet off from East Midlands Airport and were about to get on the plane before he failed the final check.
Parents Rachael and Chris Burton say it was a one-centimetre tear in the teen’s passport that saw him turned away.
But the family says the rip is on the opposite side of the page of the main photo information – so there is nothing missing from the months-old passport.
Jake says he likely damaged it on a night out.
Rachael and Chris, 47 and 51, say they were still allowed to fly but refused to leave their son at home while they set off on what was meant to be his first holiday abroad.
The mum, from Mansfield in Nottinghamshire, said: “We had gone through all the checks but right at the very end, Ryanair turned us away.
“It was absolutely heartbreaking. It would have been one thing if he had been turned away at the first instance, but to get to the gate you start getting into holiday mode and it’s just awful.
“The worst part was this woman wouldn’t even look him in the eye when she told us no.
“We had to be walked back through the airport, even down the runway, to leave. It was just awful.”
The family was set to take off on the eight-day trip on December 28.
They say they’ve lost out on the £1,067.64 they splashed on flights and £167 that went on taxis and transfers.
Thankfully, the hotel was to be paid on arrival – £392 per room so just under £800 in total.
Rachael added: “It was his first time flying, his first time going abroad. We were all devastated.
“We were going with friends and they had been trying to get us to Benidorm for years.
“I don’t think we’ll be able to get our money back, as they told us we could fly, but we’re hoping we can at least get something back for Jake.
“He thinks it’s his fault. He’s so sorry. He hasn’t come out of his bedroom.
“I think this has put him off flying for life.”
Ryanair told The Sun: “This passenger was correctly refused travel from East Midlands to Alicante as his passport was damaged and therefore not valid for travel.”
